Wow, really helpful video. I just can't believe that because she didn't know or want to look into the situation she just stated "you cannot import it here because it's a racecar" lol
I was about to make a comment on this as well, that lady was absolutely IGNORANT to the laws and how the process actually works. I called ahead in my state and they were pretty reassuring about knowing what to do when the time comes (very soon for me).
I found that if you are patient and have a generally friendly disposition you can get DMV to help you. At least that’s how it was for me in SC, she made a list of everything I needed to get translated and filled out, found a certified translator and came back the next day and left with a fully legal R33 GTR, I also got a little lucky as the lady had just done an r32 the month prior so she knew exactly what I needed to do.
i have an unregistered import in california and its not worth it unless ur ready to spend the price u spent on the car to get it registered. G&K auto is one of the 2 places in cali that will do the process of making ur car carb compliant and theyll get u that paperwork you need to bring to the dmv but like i said for a big price. the rest of the process is the same as this vid
@@soda1470 Thank you . I do see a lot of JDM cars here in Cali, of course most of them have out of state plates. I guess that is the cheaper alternative to dealing with Ca DMV
It still blows my mind that this car is rapidly approaching 60k. I wish I could go back in time and buy 5 of them when ones priced at 10k would sit on lots for months 🤣
Right?! I remember looking at them back in 2016 and you could get a really nice, low mileage example for all of $20k. Now you’re looking at mid 40k range + shipping and import. I think we’ll see $60k as an average price by the end of next year.
One minor thing I noticed in your vid was that if you are in a county that requires emissions, you have to actually got a special inspector to first get something called a DR 2635 form, and then once you get through that you can take to get a regular emissions test.
Great info! Thank you for sharing! 🍻 I didn’t know what the form number was. I’m honestly super glad I don’t have to worry about emissions down here. Lol Are you up in Denver or FoCo?
DMV is response is equivalent to saying STI, WRX and Mustangs are illegal in Colorado because they are race cars. Also.. They do still the latest current Skyline GTRs in USA You are a very patient person
The registering it out of state and bringing it back might be a play on the reciprocity laws similar to how you drivers license in one state is recognized in another. Maybe?
I am currently going through the process of registering my newly imported s14, and it is EPA exempt, but they are telling me i have to pass emissions in front of the state(because its a "Colorado" law). Did you run into any problem like this?
Truth! I will say though that the second trip was far easier than the first. After the first trip I was figuring out a backup plan to get it done out of state if need be. I still can’t believe she told me it’s considered a “race car” and can’t be registered in CO. 🤣🤣
Yes. They’re allowed to be imported under federal law. Some states have banned or restricted their road use for obtuse reasons but that depends entirely on the individual state. That said, there are ways around most things. Just don’t break any laws.
I can't find an answer anywhere so I'll ask here. If I import a car as a college student into colorado would I then be able to register it? I'm not sure because technically I'm not a Colorado resident.
So I’m looking at a gts25t that has a Texas state title. If I purchased it with a Texas state title would that be a problem registering it in Indiana? Since it already has a US state title, would I need import papers and documentation?
Short answer: It depends. Longer answer: It’s a great idea to make sure you get the original import docs to make sure everything was done legally. If the seller isn’t willing to provide those then chances are it was probably not done properly. Since the car you’re looking at already has a title, it shouldn’t be an issue to simply transfer the title to a new state. Depending on how many RHD cars your DMV people see, there’s a possibility that they might still need a copy of the import docs due to the short VIN.
So you got the original export certificate when you bought the car but the rmv kept the original? I need to wait 2 more years to get my dream import car. Very good video thank you for all the content.
You should of registered it in Oregon as no sales tax there then transferred it to Colorado. I went to Japan to get my Skyline & drove it to the port & picked it up in the US port. I first registered mine in New Hampshire as no tax there then transferred it to Florida & now had to transfer it to South Carolina & had to pay excise (property tax) which is stupid as I have family there. Florida is banning JDM do to some nonsense.
That’s a lot of title flipping. Lol I should have just registered mine in Montana or Vermont. That would have been way easier. Florida isn’t banning JDM cars. They’re revoking titles for cars that were illegally imported. As long as you’ve got the proper paperwork you’re good. 🍻
I never see insurance details on JDM vids so I hope it goes without saying once you register with DMV you can get insurance. But .... My car was registered, plated, and safety checked in my state (Hawaii)... My Allstate agent says "grey zone" category is a rejection; so far. I sent all my reg papers including Japanese auction report etc and they are sending to their underwriters for an answer. Any suggestions or comments about this area of JDM in America?
You need insurance in order to register your car. The DMV, here anyway, won’t give you plates unless the car is insured prior to your visit. That said, I use American Modern and they’ve been great. It’s been 15 months so far without a problem. The only reason an insurance company would give you difficulty is because they don’t have crash test/repair data on a particular vehicle. As a result, going with a collector policy is often your best bet. You’ll get agreed value and if something happens they’ll just total it out and auction off what’s left of the car.
@@2JZAddict Thanks for the reply! If that's true the dealer probably insured it for the week or two he had the car in stock? The dealer Sky Auto in Honolulu got the new plates and registered and safetied for a year. Then we shipped it to Kauai where I live. I'm waiting to hear back from Allstate this week. Thanks for the info and referal... It's just a pristine daily driver type that never got driven much; a '94 Toyota Corolla touring wagon; like new condition under 10,000 kilometers and rated a 4 in late 2021 auction report. Actually I am retired, have a truck, and SUV, and want this because its really cool, in perfect shape, and it will be babied so I guess I could call it a collector car?
@@mjl.9-19 I’m surprised the dealer was able to secure hard plates for you. That might be a HI thing. 🤷🏻♂️ Every state I’ve lived in you’d need to show POI before the DMV will issue hard plates. Driving around with plates and no insurance is a heft ticket in most places. Even if it’s just a temp tag, the dealer needs to verify POI before they’re able to print one. Printing one without verifying insurance and allowing the car to leave can result in a revocation of the dealer license in most states. 🤔🤷🏻♂️
Do it!! It’s totally worth it! And 100%! Every time I get in the GTR it’s a blast to rip! Just wish I had a greater surplus of cash right now so I could make more videos with it and get to modifying things. 🍻
Hi! Maybe you can help me out. Currently I am stationed in the UK, and I’m driving a 2008 Daihatsu Copen. I am in love with this car, and I want more than anything to bring it back home with me. I’m kind of at a loss on what to do. Since it’s not 25 years old I’m not sure if registering it will be at all possible. Is there anything I can do to make my precious Kei Car conform to whatever safety standards it’s supposedly not meeting? Any help will be appreciated if you ever see this, my heart is breaking thinking of selling her before I come back!
You’ve got two different exemptions that you’re trying to comply with. The 20 year DOT exemption will exempt you from emissions requirements. The 25 year rule exempts you from NHTSA requirements like multiple airbags, doorbar reinforcement, etc. Since the Diahatsu’s were never sold in the states and it’s less than 25 years old you’d need to meet both of those requirements simultaneously. As far as who can perform the work, what the scope of work would entail, and what costs would be involved, I’m not 100% sure. If you want to keep that specific car, Canada has a 15 year rule that would allow you to bring it to North America at least. The caveat there is that you’d need to know a Canadian resident in order to import and register it. If you happen to drive it over the boarder afterward and attempt to register it in the States, you will risk having it seized and crushed.
Does your state require that? Garage Defend sent both over with the paperwork before the car arrived. I’ve heard of people getting them translated at local colleges but that might be a state specific thing.
So what did getting a VIN inspection do?? Were you issued a standard 17 digit vin?? I just got a 97 Hilux through Japanese Classics. Unfortunately... Wisconsin is only allowing me to put "Classic" plates, which won't allow me to drive it the entire month of January due to the short Vin it currently has.
The VIN inspection did nothing but make the DMV happy while retaining the lowest level of convenience for the customer. Lol The title was issued with the standard Japanese VIN. According to the DMV lady Troopers have “more training in VIN verification” than what a dealership employee does. Call me crazy but looking at a stamped number on a firewall and writing it on a piece of paper doesn’t seem like it would require special “training.” 🤣🤷🏻♂️
Are you talking about when she says it’s a “race car” and I can’t register it in CO? She was just new and being fed bad information is all. The DMV is full of super nice people however one thing I’ve noticed is that their main objective seems to find a way NOT to do their job, which explains why the supervisor was telling her “no because race car.” Literally every time I go there I’ll end up getting push back about something. Even the last lady that actually ended up getting me plates was annoyed and disappeared for a good 45 minutes to verify I had everything. 🤣🤣 It’s all part of the game I suppose. Lol
Did you have to go through emissions as well? They are coming more strict here in Colorado and I am trying to review options on a car that has not ever had all the readiness monitors ready.
@@2JZAddict so even with the EPA declaration form stating “vehicles at least 21 years old and in original unmodified configuration is either exempted or excluded from EPA emission requirements” you found some counties still requiring emissions?
Denver and a lot of the surrounding counties require emissions inspections regardless of vehicle age and exemption. We can’t even get classic car plates in CO unless the vehicle is 1975 or earlier.
Hi, My name is cheva, i have bought a car from japan imported in LOS Angeles, but the DMV over here told me go to CHP and Smog the car, i have not go to CHP yet, but i went to smog station to get the car smog, the only thing i didn't pass on the smog is the OBD2 reading from the car functional check FAIL. but the emissions test and the comprehensive visual inspection PASS. if i don't live in state of colorado, can i still get my car register in colorado state?
You’d need to have an address here in order to register in CO. Bummer about the CA stuff. I’ve heard nothing but rough experiences in that state when it comes to registering JDM cars. 😬 What year is your car? If it’s pre ‘96 you would be exempt wouldn’t you? All the EFI stuff before that would have been OBD-I.
That’s a bummer. Unfortunately I don’t know enough about CA emissions requirements to offer you any kind of useful suggestions. If it were me, knowing how tight CA is on vehicle modifications I’d be moving. Lol I’ve heard of people registering remotely in MT and VT but my understanding is that CA is even cracking down on that. 🤷🏻♂️
Hey man if you can see this comment I need help … I’ve recently purchase a car in Florida and it was originally in Canada the car came in I’ve purchase it only thing I have is the title for the car I don’t have any import papers or anything I wanted to know if I gotta go to U.S customs and get those papers for me to get my car register
Make sure the car was imported legally. If it was then you should have all the proper import documentation and the seller should have provided it. If it’s an illegal car then you could be opening yourself up to a whole list of problems. Technically all you need to register it is the title and a VIN inspection in most states. Since we’re talking about FL though, they’ll issue a title for practically anything so I’d be extra cautious.
The car you want to import has to be over 25 years. If it is even 24 years and 11 months old and it comes over to the United States, the car is deemed illegal and will get crushed to the point that it can't be salvaged or saved. I've heard of a story of a guy who imported a skyline that wasn't legal and had to watch them take it to a salvage yard and destroy it before his eyes. They made the law for EPA reasons. The real reason the 25 year law exists is cause american car companies wanted to have more domination on the auto market. So companies like toyota, bmw, volkswagen, kia, ect. Those guys had to make factories here to be able to continue selling cars here. Also a rule is the car has to be I think over 50% American made steel to be considered a domestic. So your dream car from 2000 might not be legal till like 2025 or so. You have to know the exact year and month the car came off the assembly line if you wanna be absolutely safe about it.
Oof - that sucks. What I should have done, in retrospect, was register it in Montana. It’s a flat $800 per vehicle plus a small annual plate cost. Whenever I bring in another car I’ll likely go that route, or even for something newer. Colorado has an ownership tax that gets tacked in to the plates each year and tapers over the vehicles first 10 years on the road.
@@2JZAddict Yea I looked into getting a Montana LLC as well, but I heard auto insurance for LLCs are more than personal insurance so I'm not sure if that route is worth it in the long run If I plan to keep the car for a while. Actually my R33 GTR is clearing customs now and considering what I paid for it, sub 60K, the sales tax will be insane for me.
You are not correct about the VIN. You made one critical error. I’ll explain. You assumed since it already has an ID number BCNR33- that it had a “VIN”. That is incorrect. VIN is more like a “standard” for lack of a better/simpler term. It is a formatted numbering system. Your Skyline was never intended for the USDM so it has a CHASSIS NUMBER. The trooper certified that the number you were using is correct and viable (no typos or signs of alteration). And that DMV employee should be fired. She straight up lied. She made stuff up, and lied. Shameful.
I HATE dealing with bureaucrats. I try to kill them with kindness, show the deference and respect they demand and be as pleasant as possible in response to their rudeness, hostility and state sponsored stupidity, but they can always tell I'm a libertarian who despises bureaucracy and petty official tyranny. They always drag me over the coals for the joy of making me suffer. They're trolls but I'm forced to pay their salary with my taxes. I bought a little Daihatsu Hijet 4WD mini truck a week ago so I just started the arduous import process. I dread the 16 hour round trip to trailer the truck back from the port, but that's nothing compared to the torturous DMV process. I can barely survive paying taxes on my run of the mill American vehicles. I can only imagine how painful it'll be to show up with a 26 year old right hand drive truck with no VIN.
Brooo u got screwed they didnt know shit there. I live in jersey and did mine out of state and one it was cheaper less of hassle. I did t have to get a vin or anything. They keept my original numbers. I cant believe the bs they told you there wow
The DMV is pretty useless IMO. Whenever I go there they seem to be more concerned with finding a reason not to do their job than to actually find a solution. My favorite from the GT-R experience was “you can register it in CO because it’s a race car.” 🤣🤣🤣🤣 I didn’t end up needing a new VIN (thankfully, else I would have registered out of state), it’s still the original BCNR number.
Cannot register? Car is a car. They don't know what they talking about. Who ever the person that gave you those wrong info need to work at different job. If I were you I would say bullshit.......
Lol - I did. That’s why I spent so much time there. I got it registered by the time I wrapped up the video and gave an outline of the paperwork I ended up needing.
Wow, really helpful video. I just can't believe that because she didn't know or want to look into the situation she just stated "you cannot import it here because it's a racecar" lol
I was trying so hard not to laugh when she said that. 🤣🤣
I was about to make a comment on this as well, that lady was absolutely IGNORANT to the laws and how the process actually works. I called ahead in my state and they were pretty reassuring about knowing what to do when the time comes (very soon for me).
So this car only cost around $40k??
I found that if you are patient and have a generally friendly disposition you can get DMV to help you. At least that’s how it was for me in SC, she made a list of everything I needed to get translated and filled out, found a certified translator and came back the next day and left with a fully legal R33 GTR, I also got a little lucky as the lady had just done an r32 the month prior so she knew exactly what I needed to do.
I had a similar runaround at my local dmv when I registered my kei truck. Good video, thanks for uploading.
I would like to know how you can get it legally registered/legally smogged and insured in the state of California
i have an unregistered import in california and its not worth it unless ur ready to spend the price u spent on the car to get it registered. G&K auto is one of the 2 places in cali that will do the process of making ur car carb compliant and theyll get u that paperwork you need to bring to the dmv but like i said for a big price. the rest of the process is the same as this vid
@@soda1470 Thank you . I do see a lot of JDM cars here in Cali, of course most of them have out of state plates. I guess that is the cheaper alternative to dealing with Ca DMV
@@brucewayne2773honestly g&k is NOT worth it waiting for months on months for your car back and it’s not a for sure deal you can register afterwards
It still blows my mind that this car is rapidly approaching 60k. I wish I could go back in time and buy 5 of them when ones priced at 10k would sit on lots for months 🤣
Right?! I remember looking at them back in 2016 and you could get a really nice, low mileage example for all of $20k. Now you’re looking at mid 40k range + shipping and import. I think we’ll see $60k as an average price by the end of next year.
I’m about to hit the same DMV soon for my Supra , this video is very helpful. Thank you !
You’re welcome! Good luck at the DMV! Hopefully it goes well for you. 🍻👍
You are lucky to drive a skyline!!! Really helpful with all the info
One minor thing I noticed in your vid was that if you are in a county that requires emissions, you have to actually got a special inspector to first get something called a DR 2635 form, and then once you get through that you can take to get a regular emissions test.
Great info! Thank you for sharing! 🍻 I didn’t know what the form number was. I’m honestly super glad I don’t have to worry about emissions down here. Lol Are you up in Denver or FoCo?
@@2JZAddict Yep! Up in the Loveland area!
@@hesisportscards7699 Very nice! Yours doesn’t happen to be the MNP car that was at Prima about a month ago was it? 🤔
@@2JZAddict I wish haha, I'm actually in a Silver Spark GTST R33
PA is very similar i was watching this video and looking up PA import laws and its very close
DMV is response is equivalent to saying STI, WRX and Mustangs are illegal in Colorado because they are race cars. Also.. They do still the latest current Skyline GTRs in USA
You are a very patient person
I kinda want to get a job with my dmv just to be an import specialist. They don’t have that position…
Great video, very helpful. Got an S15 coming into NY soon and i heard its nearly impossible to register but going to give it a shot.
Also coming back to say that because of your video explaining how to finance I was able to secure my car, also through Garage Defend. Thanks!
The registering it out of state and bringing it back might be a play on the reciprocity laws similar to how you drivers license in one state is recognized in another. Maybe?
I am currently going through the process of registering my newly imported s14, and it is EPA exempt, but they are telling me i have to pass emissions in front of the state(because its a "Colorado" law). Did you run into any problem like this?
Who did the translation paper for you? Was it a company or?
Theres an import here already but i want it so bad
What a pain in the ASS.... The DMV always makes you jump through hoops to get anything done.
Truth! I will say though that the second trip was far easier than the first. After the first trip I was figuring out a backup plan to get it done out of state if need be. I still can’t believe she told me it’s considered a “race car” and can’t be registered in CO. 🤣🤣
Can you import used RHD Kei-trucks to USA? Which estates allow them?
Yes. They’re allowed to be imported under federal law. Some states have banned or restricted their road use for obtuse reasons but that depends entirely on the individual state. That said, there are ways around most things. Just don’t break any laws.
Man thats crazy, Josh at RevHard Motors was extremely helpful with all of this for me and my R33 in CO. Sorry you had to go through all of that.
All good. I’d rather have the experience to be able to share with other people that might be trying to do it themselves. 🍻👍
I’m buying my gts4 rn from Kobe Japan hopefully I don’t get this much hassle lol especially since I’ve seen a lot of imported cars here in Denver
Congrats on the purchase! When does it arrive? You’ll have to do the emissions compliance form for Denver. 😬
@@2JZAddict sometime in December is that hard to get ? And I might be moving to New Mexico by the time I do receive it at the port
I can't find an answer anywhere so I'll ask here. If I import a car as a college student into colorado would I then be able to register it? I'm not sure because technically I'm not a Colorado resident.
So I’m looking at a gts25t that has a Texas state title. If I purchased it with a Texas state title would that be a problem registering it in Indiana? Since it already has a US state title, would I need import papers and documentation?
Short answer: It depends.
Longer answer: It’s a great idea to make sure you get the original import docs to make sure everything was done legally. If the seller isn’t willing to provide those then chances are it was probably not done properly. Since the car you’re looking at already has a title, it shouldn’t be an issue to simply transfer the title to a new state. Depending on how many RHD cars your DMV people see, there’s a possibility that they might still need a copy of the import docs due to the short VIN.
Where u got the car from
How high is your garage ceiling?
So you got the original export certificate when you bought the car but the rmv kept the original? I need to wait 2 more years to get my dream import car. Very good video thank you for all the content.
Correct - I was hoping they could just keep a copy of it so I could frame the original but that didn’t work out. 😕
Dude I got excited for you watching this. Lol
I’d definitely install a kill switch on it so it doesn’t get stolen.
How much did it cost to buy and ship to you?
I’ll be filming the answer to that question tomorrow, weather permitting. 🍻👍
This is so extremely helpful. That sales tax is quite the surprise
Really helpful! Thanks!
You should of registered it in Oregon as no sales tax there then transferred it to Colorado. I went to Japan to get my Skyline & drove it to the port & picked it up in the US port. I first registered mine in New Hampshire as no tax there then transferred it to Florida & now had to transfer it to South Carolina & had to pay excise (property tax) which is stupid as I have family there. Florida is banning JDM do to some nonsense.
That’s a lot of title flipping. Lol I should have just registered mine in Montana or Vermont. That would have been way easier. Florida isn’t banning JDM cars. They’re revoking titles for cars that were illegally imported. As long as you’ve got the proper paperwork you’re good. 🍻
I never see insurance details on JDM vids so I hope it goes without saying once you register with DMV you can get insurance. But .... My car was registered, plated, and safety checked in my state (Hawaii)... My Allstate agent says "grey zone" category is a rejection; so far. I sent all my reg papers including Japanese auction report etc and they are sending to their underwriters for an answer. Any suggestions or comments about this area of JDM in America?
You need insurance in order to register your car. The DMV, here anyway, won’t give you plates unless the car is insured prior to your visit. That said, I use American Modern and they’ve been great. It’s been 15 months so far without a problem. The only reason an insurance company would give you difficulty is because they don’t have crash test/repair data on a particular vehicle. As a result, going with a collector policy is often your best bet. You’ll get agreed value and if something happens they’ll just total it out and auction off what’s left of the car.
@@2JZAddict Thanks for the reply! If that's true the dealer probably insured it for the week or two he had the car in stock?
The dealer Sky Auto in Honolulu got the new plates and registered and safetied for a year. Then we shipped it to Kauai where I live. I'm waiting to hear back from Allstate this week. Thanks for the info and referal... It's just a pristine daily driver type that never got driven much; a '94 Toyota Corolla touring wagon; like new condition under 10,000 kilometers and rated a 4 in late 2021 auction report.
Actually I am retired, have a truck, and SUV, and want this because its really cool, in perfect shape, and it will be babied so I guess I could call it a collector car?
@@mjl.9-19 I’m surprised the dealer was able to secure hard plates for you. That might be a HI thing. 🤷🏻♂️ Every state I’ve lived in you’d need to show POI before the DMV will issue hard plates. Driving around with plates and no insurance is a heft ticket in most places. Even if it’s just a temp tag, the dealer needs to verify POI before they’re able to print one. Printing one without verifying insurance and allowing the car to leave can result in a revocation of the dealer license in most states. 🤔🤷🏻♂️
Are you still enjoying your car? I am looking at getting one soon
Do it!! It’s totally worth it! And 100%! Every time I get in the GTR it’s a blast to rip! Just wish I had a greater surplus of cash right now so I could make more videos with it and get to modifying things. 🍻
How much did it cost?
Thank you very much, I am trying to import a r33 into the state too, this video is super helpful!!
Glad you found it useful! Congrats on the R33! 🍻🤘
Hi! Maybe you can help me out. Currently I am stationed in the UK, and I’m driving a 2008 Daihatsu Copen. I am in love with this car, and I want more than anything to bring it back home with me. I’m kind of at a loss on what to do. Since it’s not 25 years old I’m not sure if registering it will be at all possible. Is there anything I can do to make my precious Kei Car conform to whatever safety standards it’s supposedly not meeting? Any help will be appreciated if you ever see this, my heart is breaking thinking of selling her before I come back!
You’ve got two different exemptions that you’re trying to comply with. The 20 year DOT exemption will exempt you from emissions requirements. The 25 year rule exempts you from NHTSA requirements like multiple airbags, doorbar reinforcement, etc. Since the Diahatsu’s were never sold in the states and it’s less than 25 years old you’d need to meet both of those requirements simultaneously. As far as who can perform the work, what the scope of work would entail, and what costs would be involved, I’m not 100% sure. If you want to keep that specific car, Canada has a 15 year rule that would allow you to bring it to North America at least. The caveat there is that you’d need to know a Canadian resident in order to import and register it. If you happen to drive it over the boarder afterward and attempt to register it in the States, you will risk having it seized and crushed.
How can I get my translation certified ?
Does your state require that? Garage Defend sent both over with the paperwork before the car arrived. I’ve heard of people getting them translated at local colleges but that might be a state specific thing.
So what did getting a VIN inspection do?? Were you issued a standard 17 digit vin?? I just got a 97 Hilux through Japanese Classics. Unfortunately... Wisconsin is only allowing me to put "Classic" plates, which won't allow me to drive it the entire month of January due to the short Vin it currently has.
The VIN inspection did nothing but make the DMV happy while retaining the lowest level of convenience for the customer. Lol The title was issued with the standard Japanese VIN. According to the DMV lady Troopers have “more training in VIN verification” than what a dealership employee does. Call me crazy but looking at a stamped number on a firewall and writing it on a piece of paper doesn’t seem like it would require special “training.” 🤣🤷🏻♂️
Is she talking about v spec gtrs specifically?
Are you talking about when she says it’s a “race car” and I can’t register it in CO? She was just new and being fed bad information is all. The DMV is full of super nice people however one thing I’ve noticed is that their main objective seems to find a way NOT to do their job, which explains why the supervisor was telling her “no because race car.” Literally every time I go there I’ll end up getting push back about something. Even the last lady that actually ended up getting me plates was annoyed and disappeared for a good 45 minutes to verify I had everything. 🤣🤣 It’s all part of the game I suppose. Lol
Did you have to go through emissions as well? They are coming more strict here in Colorado and I am trying to review options on a car that has not ever had all the readiness monitors ready.
I did not. I intentionally live in a county that doesn’t require emissions except on diesel vehicles. Lol
@@2JZAddict so even with the EPA declaration form stating “vehicles at least 21 years old and in original unmodified configuration is either exempted or excluded from EPA emission requirements” you found some counties still requiring emissions?
Denver and a lot of the surrounding counties require emissions inspections regardless of vehicle age and exemption. We can’t even get classic car plates in CO unless the vehicle is 1975 or earlier.
I don’t know about leaving that car on a trailer in Pueblo
I was with the car the whole time. And it was right outside a police station. The rest of the time it was at my house.
Hi, My name is cheva, i have bought a car from japan imported in LOS Angeles, but the DMV over here told me go to CHP and Smog the car, i have not go to CHP yet, but i went to smog station to get the car smog, the only thing i didn't pass on the smog is the OBD2 reading from the car functional check FAIL. but the emissions test and the comprehensive visual inspection PASS.
if i don't live in state of colorado, can i still get my car register in colorado state?
You’d need to have an address here in order to register in CO. Bummer about the CA stuff. I’ve heard nothing but rough experiences in that state when it comes to registering JDM cars. 😬 What year is your car? If it’s pre ‘96 you would be exempt wouldn’t you? All the EFI stuff before that would have been OBD-I.
@@2JZAddict my car is 1997 September, and the smog test in CA only have is OBD2, but my car is JOBD ,
That’s a bummer. Unfortunately I don’t know enough about CA emissions requirements to offer you any kind of useful suggestions. If it were me, knowing how tight CA is on vehicle modifications I’d be moving. Lol I’ve heard of people registering remotely in MT and VT but my understanding is that CA is even cracking down on that. 🤷🏻♂️
Just a quick question, it might sound stupid. Do you know if there is any way to import a "modern" Japanese car?
Depends on the country you live in. If you’re in the US it’ll need to be 25+ years old which isn’t terribly modern.
@@2JZAddict oh damn it lol I was hoping there would be a possibility of getting the new z with the rhd and the fairlady badge haha I guess not
Hey man if you can see this comment I need help … I’ve recently purchase a car in Florida and it was originally in Canada the car came in I’ve purchase it only thing I have is the title for the car I don’t have any import papers or anything I wanted to know if I gotta go to U.S customs and get those papers for me to get my car register
Make sure the car was imported legally. If it was then you should have all the proper import documentation and the seller should have provided it. If it’s an illegal car then you could be opening yourself up to a whole list of problems. Technically all you need to register it is the title and a VIN inspection in most states. Since we’re talking about FL though, they’ll issue a title for practically anything so I’d be extra cautious.
Good info, for me it doesn’t worth my time and the hassle
Thank you for your helpful information. I think Cali is the worst state to import JDM cars.
Karen ADDING RACING😂😂😂😂Vehicle to the talk
I liked the car in 2000! can i import a 2000 car to america ?
The car you want to import has to be over 25 years. If it is even 24 years and 11 months old and it comes over to the United States, the car is deemed illegal and will get crushed to the point that it can't be salvaged or saved. I've heard of a story of a guy who imported a skyline that wasn't legal and had to watch them take it to a salvage yard and destroy it before his eyes. They made the law for EPA reasons. The real reason the 25 year law exists is cause american car companies wanted to have more domination on the auto market. So companies like toyota, bmw, volkswagen, kia, ect. Those guys had to make factories here to be able to continue selling cars here. Also a rule is the car has to be I think over 50% American made steel to be considered a domestic. So your dream car from 2000 might not be legal till like 2025 or so. You have to know the exact year and month the car came off the assembly line if you wanna be absolutely safe about it.
How is your sales tax that low? Unless the car was declared at much lower value than it really is through customs, that is quite low for a 40-50K car.
It was like $1300. That’s low?? You only pay sales tax on the vehicle purchase price, not everything else to at needs done to get it here.
@@2JZAddict dang your state tax must be a lot lower than mine then. For my S2000 I spent 17K on, it was about $1200 in IL. We pay over 7% here....
Oof - that sucks. What I should have done, in retrospect, was register it in Montana. It’s a flat $800 per vehicle plus a small annual plate cost. Whenever I bring in another car I’ll likely go that route, or even for something newer. Colorado has an ownership tax that gets tacked in to the plates each year and tapers over the vehicles first 10 years on the road.
@@2JZAddict Yea I looked into getting a Montana LLC as well, but I heard auto insurance for LLCs are more than personal insurance so I'm not sure if that route is worth it in the long run If I plan to keep the car for a while. Actually my R33 GTR is clearing customs now and considering what I paid for it, sub 60K, the sales tax will be insane for me.
Wanna help me find a car in the future
Sure. Let me know when you’re ready. 🍻
Big bet
@@2JZAddict my first car was a 1992 us Subaru SVX I want it back but I want a JDM model
All the DMVs across America have the same automated female voice calling out numbers lol
No skyline but you can registered a Ferrari
You can register a Corvette a ferrari, a Lamborghini but not a skyline?
You are not correct about the VIN.
You made one critical error.
I’ll explain.
You assumed since it already has an ID number BCNR33- that it had a “VIN”.
That is incorrect.
VIN is more like a “standard” for lack of a better/simpler term.
It is a formatted numbering system.
Your Skyline was never intended for the USDM so it has a CHASSIS NUMBER.
The trooper certified that the number you were using is correct and viable (no typos or signs of alteration).
And that DMV employee should be fired. She straight up lied. She made stuff up, and lied.
Shameful.
$54,000 in case you were wondering… 😅
I think they don't like SKYLINE. A race car? What disqualify this vehicle from being registered imported.
I HATE dealing with bureaucrats. I try to kill them with kindness, show the deference and respect they demand and be as pleasant as possible in response to their rudeness, hostility and state sponsored stupidity, but they can always tell I'm a libertarian who despises bureaucracy and petty official tyranny. They always drag me over the coals for the joy of making me suffer. They're trolls but I'm forced to pay their salary with my taxes.
I bought a little Daihatsu Hijet 4WD mini truck a week ago so I just started the arduous import process. I dread the 16 hour round trip to trailer the truck back from the port, but that's nothing compared to the torturous DMV process. I can barely survive paying taxes on my run of the mill American vehicles. I can only imagine how painful it'll be to show up with a 26 year old right hand drive truck with no VIN.
Imagine that, government workers not knowing how to do their job. Also, trying to quote laws that are policy 🤦🏼♂️
Brooo u got screwed they didnt know shit there. I live in jersey and did mine out of state and one it was cheaper less of hassle. I did t have to get a vin or anything. They keept my original numbers. I cant believe the bs they told you there wow
The DMV is pretty useless IMO. Whenever I go there they seem to be more concerned with finding a reason not to do their job than to actually find a solution. My favorite from the GT-R experience was “you can register it in CO because it’s a race car.” 🤣🤣🤣🤣 I didn’t end up needing a new VIN (thankfully, else I would have registered out of state), it’s still the original BCNR number.
Where outnor Jersey did you do it? I'm in NYC and I'm going to have to do this soon
Cannot register? Car is a car. They don't know what they talking about. Who ever the person that gave you those wrong info need to work at different job. If I were you I would say bullshit.......
Lol - I did. That’s why I spent so much time there. I got it registered by the time I wrapped up the video and gave an outline of the paperwork I ended up needing.